A group of young climate activists presented a petition to members of the Evansville City Council Monday night in honor of Earth Day. The students are asking the city to go carbon neutral by 2050.
The Evansville Climate Charter movement has been working since December to develop its charter. It would also commit the city to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and upholding the air quality and sustainability goals of the Paris Agreement.
City council passed a resolution last month calling on the city to depend only on renewable energy by 2050.
Signature School senior Benjamin Koontz calls the resolution a step in the right direction but says it doesn’t go far enough.
He says 2050 is too far away and disagrees with its non-binding nature. "They don’t necessarily have to do anything," he says. "We’re concerned that that would simply result with sequential councils kicking it off and not doing anything until it’s too late."
The group consists mostly of high school juniors and seniors. A change.org petition for its charter has received more than 250 signatures as of Monday night.
A full version of the group's charter: